NYUNGWE FOREST NATIONAL PARK
Straddling the southwest corner of the beautiful country, Nyungwe National park became a park in 2004 as Rwanda was looking at increasing the country’s tourism beyond just mountain gorillas, is a vast area of an untouched tropical forest, with a dense and high canopy. The park is one of Rwanda’s top-status parks and is worth that because of its spectacular diversity.
The heart of Nyungwe Forest is a magnificent one, like a scene from a virtually created forest, with old & tall mahoganies, giant ferns that tower above, and other epiphytes and tree climbing plants on the branches and trees. It hosts brightly colored birds (over 300 species) and they flit around butterflies and famous primate residents (Chimpanzees & monkeys) that the park is renowned for.

The real sense of Nyungwe Forest is got when you try the region’s highest canopy walkway. The metal bridge is suspended 70m above the forest and 160m long. It might not be for the faint-hearted or those that are scared of heights, but the view of the park that is sprawled below the walkway is mesmerizing. Nyungwe receives plenty of rain and is a great catchment for Rwanda supplying about 70% of the country with water.

Wildlife in Nyungwe National Park
Nyungwe National Park spreads over 1020 sqkm and this includes a swathe of one of Africa’s oldest montane forests. It is home to about 320 bird species (29 of these are Rift Valley Endemics), about 140 orchids, 1068 plant species, over 120 butterfly species, and 75 different mammals that include 13 primates. Of these the most sought-after are the chimpanzees and black and white colobus monkeys.

Safari to Nyungwe Forest National Park
From Kigali, the drive to Nyungwe National Park is an interesting one through the winding roads. It is a 4-5 hour drive from the capital. The route to Nyungwe has other several attractions that include the King’s palace at Nyanza, and the National Museum at Huye, which makes it a great cultural and historical corridor worth breaking the journey to the park.
Inside the park, is the Uwinka Visitors center, which has information about the park’s history, fauna, and flora plus the local culture. It is here that you get guides for the hikes through Nyungwe Forest.

Lodges and Camps at Nyungwe Forest
Just like most of Rwanda’s wild parks, accommodation at Nyungwe National park is a bit limited. But good of it, it spans across all the ranges of budgets. The best here is a luxury facility with an infinity pool and gym- Nyungwe House (By One & Only) that overlooks the canopy and tea plantations. Second to it is the Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel, which is perched on the hill that looks out to the volcanoes and is surrounded by a tea plantation.

Activities at Nyungwe Forest National Park
Primate safaris in Nyungwe Forest
If you are a primate lover, Nyungwe National park is your ideal destination. The park is home to 13 different primate species and visitors to the park go for at least one specie, the popular one being the chimpanzees. The chimpanzee tracking activity starts early morning (5 am, Rwanda time) and is done in groups of 8 as it is with gorilla tracking. When you locate them, you are allowed an hour. The sightings of Chimpanzees are not clear or reliable as mountain gorillas, the forest is dense, and the chimpanzees are always high in the canopy, playful, and jump from tree to tree but they also come to the ground. Watching them is worth a while.
Visitors also can engage in the Rwenzori Colobus monkey and grey-cheeked Mangabey tracking. The Colobus monkeys can be found in troops of several hundred. For the L’Hoest’s monkeys can be seen ambling on the roadside as you drive past the forest.

Forest hiking and walks
About 130km of hiking trails have been created at the park, and these allow visitors to explore the forest interior and the wildlife that call it their habitat. A walk in the forest is excellent and the trails can offer up to eight hours of walking. The shortest of these is the Igishigishigi trail that gets you to the canopy walk and the Bigugu trail is about 6 hours and leads to the 2950m high mountain at the park. These are part of the 15 walking trails and the ones that take you to the Isumo Waterfalls. Make time to indulge yourself at the park.

Birdwatching
Nyungwe is the residence of some unique feathery beauties, around 320 colorful birds have been recorded here. Most of them are tropical forest birds, and you have to go hard when looking for them. These include 27 species that are endemic to the Albertine Rift Valley. Some of the species include the Hornbills, Great Blue Turacos, Red-breasted sparrow hawks, and other specials.

Canopy Walk
It is memorable, it is photogenic to walk along the suspension bridge at the park. 70m up in the canopy and 160m long, with the most epic views of the park (bird’s eye view). The canopy bridge gives visitors a unique perspective of the park and in 2019, Lonely Planet named it the world’s best canopy walkway. Don’t miss it while here.